Troop reductions

June 03, 2006

ANOTHER OPINIONFrom the Dallas Morning News If you are looking for a timetable to get all the U.S. troops out of Iraq, think again. The situation remains so volatile that only a wild-eyed dreamer would think Iraq has turned the corner. Even President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair owned up to the problems last week. But the situation doesn't preclude thinking that some troop reductions could occur sooner than later. First, new Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki claimed last week that the Iraqi militia could take control of large parts of Iraq outside of Baghdad by year's end. Second, Iraq's government continues to come together in fits and spurts. Maliki insists the interior and defense ministries must get their acts together. No more of the death squads and goons, whom he seems personally committed to stopping. If he succeeds, and success certainly would be in his best interest as a politician, the need for as many U.S, British and other forces would diminish. Third, talk about troop withdrawals could help tilt the balance of opinion among the Shia who don't want to fight a long civil war without American support. There are a lot of ifs in this equation. And we'd be the first to admit it's impossible to predict anything about Iraq. But neither is it entirely out of the question for some troops to come home. Wouldn't that be a glorious moment?